Photographer Profile

My name is Melissa Howell and I specialize in custom portrait design for your home. You can visit my official photography website at http://www.blueprintsphotography.com/ to view more of my work and to contact me to set up a consultation.

Friday, September 30, 2011

Start With Why

I recently read the book Start With Why by Simon Sinek. In the book, the author posits that only those businesses with a clear sense of why will be successful. It's not enough to know what you do, or how you do it. People respond to why you do what you do. I was surprised to find that there is an interview with him on BYUtv and I found it very interesting to watch as he helped other people discover their why. You can watch the segment here.

He gave an example in his book of a man and a woman on a first date. The woman asks the man what he does, and he says something like, "I run my own consulting business. I am the most highly-paid consultant in the city, and I drive a Mercedes and know Brad Pitt on a first name basis!" How likely is it that this guy will get a second date? Not likely at all. But what if he answers this way? "I am so lucky that I get to help people every day to realize their goals. I can't tell you how great it feels when one of my consulting clients achieves something really important to them. This has provided a great living for me, and I've been really blessed to meet some well-known and influential people along the way." Now will he get a second date? Highly likely, because he explained his why. He loves to help other people. That's why he's a consultant. He also explained some results of his work, but they were not the main focus like they were in the first scenario.